Zverev’s demons

The German player, Alexander Zverev, finally got the monkey off his back at the French Open men’s tennis final on Sunday. With Carlos Alcaraz out due to injury, and top seeded Jannik Sinner bowing out early in the fierce Parisian heat, here was Zverev’s chance to take his first Grand Slam.

He has frequently stated that he didn’t want to be remembered as the best player never to win a major. He was runner-up in three Slam finals prior to this year’s French Open. The toughest loss, since he was two sets up and serving for the match, came in a nail-biting five-setter against the Austrian player, Dominic Thiem, at the US Open in 2020. That defeat was largely due to Zverev’s nerves — in particular, double-faulting at crucial moments. These days his serve is far more powerful and less shaky. This proved to be the deciding factor in his triumph at Roland Garros on Sunday.

He defeated the Italian player, Flavio Cobolli, in five gruelling sets in a four-hour final filled with almost unbearable tension which ended 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7, 6-1 in the German’s favour. By the end of the fourth set, Zverev was visibly limping, battling with fatigue, perhaps compounded by his type 1 diabetes, a condition which he constantly monitors during matches.  There was a nasty feeling of déjà vu. Were the German’s previous losses coming back to haunt him?  But then his opponent began clutching at his calf and both players were receiving treatment during the short changeovers, which made for a rather surreal spectacle. The trainers had precisely 90 seconds to work their magic during sit-downs, since a full 15-minute medical timeout is disallowed in cases of loss of conditioning, such as cramp.

Barely able to move, Zverev decided to swing big in an effort to keep the points short. The high-risk gamble worked, finally winning him the match.

Perhaps now that he has finally grasped that elusive Slam, it will free him up to challenge Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, the two players who have had a stranglehold on the sport, winning the past nine Slams between them. While they are incredibly likeable characters and thrilling players to watch, the men’s game was beginning to feel somewhat predictable. We need more rivalries and after this win in Paris, Zverev could well step into the role.

Meanwhile, we also have some exciting emerging youngsters in players such as Rafael Jodar, Joao Fonseca and Jakub Mensik with their raw exuberance and explosive power but it may take a while for them to settle down and to mature into serious Slam contenders.

I’ve never really been a fan of Zverev. He’s twice been accused by girlfriends of domestic violence. His first major allegation (by Olya Sharypova) was investigated internally by the ATP, which closed the case citing insufficient evidence. The other case  (involving Brenda Patea) actually went to a German court and was settled by a financial agreement in 2024 with no admission of guilt. And, judging by his on-court outbursts and racket-smashing, Zverev clearly does have anger issues.

However, one can’t really begrudge the fact that, after all his emotional and physical travails, he’s finally a Grand Slam champion. On the tennis court at least, Alexander Zverev has finally overcome his demons.

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